The Visitor
by Ortho Runners
Summary: It was such a beautiful night... But what happens when the past takes place?


**_Hey Guys! :D_**

**_I hope you enjoy the story! _**

**_Disclaimer: We do not own the Night World =( _**

**_- Ortho Runners -_**-

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It was weird what a beautiful night was; he couldn't help himself but looks at the sky and think about her. It didn't matter if she was right next to him or sleeping under the stars on their favorite hill, for him it was probably impossible stop thinking about her. He still remembered- in perfect detail- how they first met, his sisters running away to this small town, away from the rest of the Night World, called Briar Creek. How he had to go and track them down, how he had to convince Quinn to let him take care of everything before going to the elders, how he started investigating all the neighbors that had any contact with his great aunt, and… his great aunt. _"This is Mary-Lynnette the one that I was telling you that was such a good friend with your aunt"_ Claudine had said to him, he thought about it, and remembered how hard she tried to find out who murdered Opal, how hard she tried to be strong, how badly she had to deal with him as well. She was wonderful, he never thought that a girl like her could tame a guy like him, but that was exactly what she had done. She tamed him, just like an animal.

The room was suddenly cold, _when did that happened? _He shifted the blankets and made sure to cover Mary-Lynnette, that was weird, the night was actually warm. Wind started flowing around them but Mary-Lynnette did not even seem to notice it. He turned back to look at the stars, now thinking about the nightthey fo und out who killed his aunt.

_Jeremy_.

The thought and the memory of seeing Mary-Lynnette protecting herself against that wolf, seeing that he was so close in losing her, seeing that wolf trying to convince her of leaving him. He deserved it, he knew that he was not good enough for her; he was a player, a womanizer, a jerk, vain, self centered. All the characteristics that she was not. She was intelligent, she was sweet, she was honest and humble, she was brave, and she was fiery. He loved that so much, the fact that she was so fiery; she had told him that she could take care of herself, even if she was just a human -or vermin as he used to believe. He was so surprised when he saw that the only vermin at that moment was him and not Mary-Lynnette, and even more when he realized that her opinion mattered to him. He shivered, the place was cold, and he touched Mary-Lynnette softly on the head, she was all right, she wasn't cold at all, then _why was he freezing?_

How ironic was that? He was a vampire after all, but this gave him creeps. Something did not feel right. Slowly he stood up and looked around, _what was going on? Why am I so cold?_ He felt so weird, like the cold was not around him, but inside him.

"Ash" a soft whispered said through the wind.

He looked around, but there was no one but his soulmate. He tensed, something was not right and he had to protect Mary-Lynnette, he looked down and saw her sleeping peacefully.

"Ash" the voice said now closer.

Ash turned around looking everywhere. Taking in every shadow in every dark corner. He couldn't believe that even with his vampire view he wasn't able to see who was bothering them. He shivered. The temperature now was even colder, he took his position ready to receive an attack, but nothing happened, only the wind seemed to be bothering around them. Ash shook his head and thought, _what? Now you are imagining voices?_

"Ash Redfern" an angry whispered broke right next to him.

He turned around, but again there was no one. The voice, it had been so familiar. It actually brought some old memories from his childhood; he had been a naughty boy, he used to prank everybody, and that the owner of that voice was trying to make present in his head. He shook the thoughts away and focused in on the present. There was something going on, and it looked like his past was trying to hunt him.

"Ash Redfern" the voice now was now right next to him, but every time he looked around he had the same answer than before. _If Quinn or Morgead are trying to pull a prank, I swear that I'll bite their heads off!_ He thought about shaking his soulmate awake, but something made him stop.

"Ash Redfern" Ash's blood suddenly froze as his heart skipped a beat. If vampires could get heart attacks, then he was having one right there. All the memories that were trying to take place in his head came at once. A little Ash running away laughing while someone followed him, a little Ash messing with the garden, a little Ash letting the goats free, a little Ash hiding from his aunt. The color of his face drowned when he looked at the woman in front of him. She had the same soft gray hair color, the same old fashion clothes, and the same angry look in her face.

"Ash Redfern" the old woman whispered again, Ash saw that her lips where hardly moving, but he could understand her perfectly. He looked at her but was unable to speak; he couldn't believe that she was actually here in front of him.

"Ash Redfern" his aunt said again placing carefully her hands in her hips "Answer me young boy!"

Ash looked perplexed but managed to stutter "A-Aunt O-opal?" his voice was slightly shaking and he didn't succeed in keeping it steady.

"Who else? Santa?" his aunt replayed with sarcasm in her voice. At this Ash frowned "Do not give me that kind of look, boy!" his aunt reproached him.

"H-how, W-why, W-hat?" he tried to ask but failed.

"What? You are not glad to see your aunt Ash?" the old woman said raising an eyebrow. He looked perplexed but shook his head and looked down.

"I-I am! Of course! B-but h-how? I mean, how is it possible?" he said caressing his hair slightly "y-you a-are… well…"

"dead?" his aunt answered for him.

"well… yeah" He said staring at the floor again "am I dreaming?"

"No you are not…" his aunt said softly.

"then, how?" he said raising his voice

"Be quite boy! You'll wake her up!" his aunt said angrily. He followed her gaze and saw Mary-Lynnette still sleeping peacefully. When he looked back to his aunt, he saw that she had been staring at him carefully.

"What?" He asked rudely

"Do not use that voice with me boy!" his aunt said angry again. Ash looked shocked; he didn't know that ghosts could be that bad tempered. Guessing his thoughts his aunt narrowed her eyes to him "be quite because you'll wake her up! And do not use that tone of voice with me"

"I-I'm sorry aunt Opal" Ash said looking innocent. All the old memories from his childhood were coming back. But there was also a question rising in his head…

"What are you doing in here?" he asked her. She looked offended so Ash tried again "No! I mean, why you aren't in…" he stopped for a second not sure in what to say.

"Heaven? Hell? Next life?" his aunt said tired.

"Well… yeah, I mean yes" His aunt looked at him serious.

"I can't move on, because I don't want her getting hurt" his aunt replayed softly. She looked over his shoulder and Ash followed her stare again. Mary-Lynnette was still asleep, but she was moving quite a lot, he turned around to get next to her but his aunt stopped him.

"Where do you think you are going?" she asked him

"Next to my soulmate?" he answered trying to not sound rude but failing.

"Ash, listen to me, I know you never followed rules and obviously you will not obey me since you never really cared about anybody, but you will stay away from her" his aunt said firmly. Ash looked shocked, he didn't know what to say or react "I've known you since you were a little boy, and to be honest you were terrible! And before I died I heard awful things about you, young boy! Things that I would ground you for the rest of your life if I were still alive, things that you do not forget easily, but you will obey me in this Ash, like it or not, you will stay away from Mary-Lynnette" Anger, that's what he, felt. So the old hag was trying to take him apart from the love of his life? She had no idea.

"And if I don't?" he asked challenging. His aunt looked hurt but firmly.

"I will make you boy" she answered serious. Ash laughed, and tried to make his way to Mary-Lynnette, but every time he tried, his aunt would step in his way. To his disappointment, he couldn't do much, after all she was a ghost and he couldn't touch her. Therefore it was completely pointless for him to fight her.

"Why are you doing this?" Ash said controlling himself.

"Why?" his aunt asked incredulous "Ash! You'll hurt her! And it's not her fault whatever you are trying to do to her, that's why!" Ash looked at her astonished, why would he hurt Mary-Lynnette? How was that even possible? "Stay away from the girl for God's sake!"

"No! I won't! And how can you be thinking that anyways? I would kill myself before produce her any damage!" she looked at him carefully.

"You are different" she said impress

"Your tone is offensive aunt!" Ash said half mocking half meaning it. She shook her head, and Ash saw that she did not believe him "Listen, I know who I was; I was a disaster all right? I admit it! But I would never ever hurt Mare" he ended softly.

"I've seen what you've done Ash" this took him off guard "I saw how you protected her from Jeremy, I saw how hard was for you to get to her, but that's exactly why you'll never be good enough for her Ash, think about your past." she answered him. Pain passed through his eyes.

"And you think that I don't know that?" he said feeling uneasy.

"Then please, stay away from her! She's had enough with pain already! Her mother died, Ash! She doesn't need to add the pain that you'll cause her" He could see how much his aunt was begging him, he felt something rising in his chest "Listen to me, I've known you my whole life. You were a terrible boy, and I'm sure you grew up to be even worse."

"Listen to me, I know what you think of me, and I'm not asking you to believe that I changed," his aunt was looking at the floor, it seemed that she was really worried for this girl, and somehow he appreciated it, even if that meant that he had to do something about it, "but I'm asking you to trust me this time, I promise you that I will never hurt her, I promise you that I will always protect her, I promise you that I will love her more than anybody in this world" she was looking at him oddly

"And your word means what...?" she answered him. He didn't reply, how could he? She was right after all, his word did not mean anything, and he couldn't blame her for not believing him. However his aunt was looking at him with soft eyes and he realized that he talked from the heart, and that she knew that he meant every single word he had said.

"Ash…" his aunt said softly, he looked up and saw that she was crying. He suddenly felt vulnerable, _how was possible that a ghost could cry?_ He felt the necessity of hugging his aunt, to comfort her. They were never close, the opposite, actually. She was always trying to kill him because he had done something to her. But they said, that family is your family not matter what.

"You care about her, don't you?" Ash asked softly. His aunt laughed softly without humor.

"I adore that girl, she was always soft and sweet, she was funny. She made me company when no one was around" she sigh softly remembering "When they killed your uncle, I thought that I was going to die alone and forgotten, but you know what?" a silent tear was coming out her eyes "I didn't, I died with a friend, and she made sure to find out who did that to me. She comfort me and helped me, she was with me when no one else was"

"You left us! You disappear! You can't say we left you" Ash said feeling angry. She looked at him and in an extremely tired voice she answered him "Did any of you tried to find me? Did any of you try to make sure I was fine?" Ash looked away. Of course they hadn't, they all assumed that she was devastated for her dead husband, and after all she was a vampire, she could have taken care of herself.

"Rowan and my sisters found you" Ash said after a while. She looked at the stars and thought for a while "True, they did. But Mary-Lynnette was with me every day, always caring for me" she sighed "I love her Ash, and I'm not expecting you to understand, and if you wish, you can go to the elders and tell that I've broke the Night World rules, since this girl is like a daughter for me" Ash gave her a look, tell the elders? First of all, she was a ghost; secondly he would never tell anyone about Mary-Lynnette_, what part of protecting her she didn't get? _He snorted. "Ash Redfern! Do not snort me!"

He looked at her deeply and with all the seriousness in the world said softly "I love her".

His aunt looked at him for a while, he let her. After what seemed hours, she sighed heavily "I always wondered when the day I would see you grow up would come, the day you would become a man" He met her gaze and saw something in her eyes that made him felt a knot in his throat "And you are one now Ash, a completely different one than your father used to be" slowly she came close to him and placed a hand in his shoulder "I'm proud of you boy" he looked at her, even if her hand couldn't really touch his shoulder, he did feel a cold feeling, but mostly, he felt something that he never felt before, he felt happy, pure, innocent.

"If you hurt her, I promise you that I'll came back to take you away from her by your ear!" she said with deep meaning. Ash laughed softly at this, he knew that some things were never going to change, so he simple nodded at her as he used to do when he was younger. She looked at him suspiciously and walked pass him; slowly she made her way to the fragile girl on the floor and knelt slowly next to her. Ash watched her form where he was and slowly made her way to join them, he could see that his aunt was carefully caressing Mary-Lynnette's hair, just like she was a little girl; a soft smile cursed his lips "Tell her that I'm proud of her, and I will always take care of her" she whispered softly. Ash just looked at her.

"Be good" his aunt said standing up "I'll be watching you" Ash laughed inside at the thought, but only nodded. "Bye kid" and with that, she disappeared.

Ash looked at the empty air, while a silent tear fell down his cheek.

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**_- Ortho Runners -_**


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